


bet-bet-better

by loaf-of-toast (vagarius)



Category: My Babysitter's A Vampire
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Dance, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Pre-Relationship, Silly boys are silly, Slice of Life, more banter than initially intended, no powers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-14
Updated: 2019-05-14
Packaged: 2020-03-05 13:18:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18829453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vagarius/pseuds/loaf-of-toast
Summary: or: Grandma Weir owns a dance studio, Ethan makes a bet, and Benny finally gets to sayI told you so.





	bet-bet-better

**Author's Note:**

> so... this happened?

“Are you excited for the showcase, Sarah?” Ethan asks, albeit awkwardly. “It’s just a month away.”

It was late afternoon at the dance studio, and most of the dancers were getting ready to go home. Ethan had been waiting for Benny before running into Sarah in the hallway as she was packing her stuff away.

“Honestly?” Sarah says, closing her locker, “I’m pretty nervous. The duet is more Erica’s style, so I might end up just fading into the background.”

“I’m sure you’re gonna do great, Sarah.” Ethan truly did think this. Sarah might be newer to the studio, and Ethan might not have known her that long, but one thing he did know was that Sarah was an amazing dancer when she put her heart into it. Which she always did, especially when Erica was involved. “You always do.”

“I’m not too sure this time, but thanks.” Sarah leans against her locker. “And what about you, Ethan?”

“Me?” Ethan squeaked, and temporarily curses the voice cracks that never quite went away even after a year and a half of high school. He clears his throat. “I’m a bit nervous too, I guess.” Ethan smiles shyly. “I do really like my dance, though.”

Suddenly, someone claps their hand on his shoulder with a _smack,_ and Ethan already knows it’s Benny by the time he says, “I heard _nervous_ and _dance_. So, showcase?”

Sarah nods, and without prompting, Benny tells them, “My dance is going to blow you guys away this year. You guys won’t even see it coming.”

Sarah snorts. “Are you sure? It’s probably another high-energy pop tune. You know, like you always do.”

“Hey!” Benny drawls. “That’s not _all_ I do.”

Sarah raises her eyebrows. “Not counting group dances? Yes, it is.” She turns to Ethan next. “And you’re probably dancing to some serious, lyrical song again. Like you always do.”

“Hey!” Ethan inadvertently repeats. “I can do things that aren’t – “ Ethan starts to make air quotes – “serious, lyrical stuff.” Sarah still looks disbelieving, and it’s this look that Ethan will later blame for what he says next. “I bet you,” he says, “that Benny and I could totally switch our showcase dances and do perfectly fine. We’d do _great._ ”

“Oh really?” Sarah says. “Is that an _actual_ bet?”

“Yeah!” Ethan says.

 _“What?”_ Benny exclaims, “I did _not_ agree to this!”

“If we successfully switch our dances for showcase,” Ethan continues, “then, then…” He pauses. “Then you have to convince Grandma to let Benny and I finally do a duet next year!”

Sarah rolls her eyes. “You guys _know_ why Grandma Weir never gives you two a duet. Your – “

“Dancing styles are too different, I know,” Benny suddenly cuts in. “But!” he points out, in abrupt realization, “If Ethan and I can perform each other’s dances, that means we _could_ dance in the same style, if we wanted to.”

“Fine. What do I get when you _can’t_ do it.”

“We’ll…” Ethan starts, “We won’t perform in the showcase next year.”

Sarah raises her eyebrows again. “Is that a deal, then?”

“Yeah!” Ethan says.

“Yeah?” Benny questions, and at Ethan’s nod, repeats, “Yeah!”

“Okay then. Good luck, I guess.” Sarah stands up from her position leaning against the locker, and leaves the two of them to contemplate what they just agreed to.

“Oh god,” Ethan says, after a few moments. _“Oh god.”_

Benny sighs. “I’m not religious, but we may need some divine intervention to pull this off.”

Ethan isn’t religious, either, but he can’t help but agree.

 

 

 

“This is all your fault!” Benny says the next day, during their block of free practice. “Sarah already told Grandma about the deal! Which means we have to go through with it!” Benny paces in front of the mirror. “I never thought I’d see the day I’d get to say those words to you, but I can’t even enjoy blaming you because I’m too busy _freaking out!”_

“Benny,” Ethan says, trying to calm him down. _“Benny.”_ Said boy finally stops pacing, but Ethan didn’t really think about what he wanted to say after getting his attention. “We can do this,” he says. “Maybe. Let’s just watch each other’s dances first?”

Benny takes a deep breath, then replies, “Yeah, okay,” before walking over to his plugged-in laptop and finding his song (or what was his song) for the showcase. Ethan scoots to the laptop as well so he can press play for Benny. The routine is almost familiar, until Ethan remembers that he’s going to have to dance to whatever craziness Benny concocted this time. Ethan secretly hopes it isn’t as high-energy (and, most likely, slightly suggestive) as Ethan expects it will be. He knows, however, that this is Benny’s 12-year showcase dance that’s he been waiting to do since about age 4, and that it’s going to be the most high-energy, slightly suggestive, Benny-esque dance Ethan has ever seen.

(For a moment, Ethan considers begging Grandma Weir to call off the deal so Benny can keep the dance he’s probably put his heart and soul into like he’s wanted to for so long, but also knows that Benny would never consider backing down when he’s agreed to do something. Even if this something was, for once, Ethan’s fault. Benny’s loyal like that.)

Ethan presses play, and already he knows he’s going to have trouble pulling this off. The dance is fast-paced, and requires a certain amount of physical looseness and mental shamelessness which Ethan simply does not possess. Benny pulls it off well, of course, but what really strikes Ethan is how much _fun_ he’s having. He matches his facial expressions with the music (something Benny is insanely good at), but no matter what expression he has on, Ethan can tell that there’s a wide grin just under the surface. Ethan claps when Benny finishes and says, “That was amazing,” then adds, “I am so doomed.”

“Thank you, thank you,” Benny replies, exaggeratedly bowing. “And, uh.” He purses his lips. “Yeah, probably.”

Ethan sighs. “I guess it’s my turn.” He finds the right song on Benny’s laptop then gets into his starting position.

Ethan wasn’t lying when he said he really liked his dance. It was slow, and pretty melancholy, but Ethan loved it. And he might’ve denied it in front of Sarah, but he does put a lot of his focus into lyrical and similar dance styles, and it shows. He finishes his dance to the sound of Benny’s whistles, and Benny saying, “Dude, that was beautiful, but I literally cannot physically perform at least a third of your dance.”

Ethan scrunches his eyebrows. “What do you mean?”

“I _mean,_ ” Benny continues, “I am physically not that flexible.”

“Oh,” Ethan says. “Right.”

Ethan plays his dance back in his head, then quickly realizes that the second move in his dance is a heel stretch. And that at one point he does an elbow bridge. And a valdez. And –

 _Okay,_ Ethan thinks. _So we’re both screwed. That’s cool._

“I guess,” Benny says with false cheer, “We should start learning then.”

 

 

 

As false as the cheer in Benny’s voice was, he looks genuinely happy to explain the moves in his dance.

Ethan is slowly figuring out that he’s missing one other key thing to do Benny’s dance: _stamina._ His stamina isn’t _bad,_ per say – he is a dancer, after all – but he was always more focused on muscle endurance, and not… whatever this is. Cardio?

Whatever it is, Ethan hasn’t practiced it enough, and it shows. He’s vaguely winded trying to just do the moves separately, while Benny looks like he’s having the time of his life bouncing everywhere. He probably is, honestly. It’s _Benny._

Later, Ethan does his dance one more time, so Benny can at least learn the timing.

And then they stretch.

The two of them quickly realize having Benny try to do Ethan’s dance is useless if he can’t physically do a third of the moves. Luckily, Benny seems to possess the extra leg strength needed to get through the dance, which seems to be the only thing about this whole mess that works in their favor. Ethan also knows that Benny knows how to get his flexibility up to par for group dances when given notice, but Ethan’s dance still requires a bit more than what Benny usually needs work up to.

“Ugh,” Benny says, for what is probably the fourth time. “I’m too tall for this. And it’s boring. How can you stand this?”

If there wasn’t the possibility of losing his form, Ethan would shrug. “I guess I’m just used to it? I needed flexibility for all the lyrical and acro stuff.” The timer goes off, and they switch to the other leg. “Wait, did you just indirectly call me short?”

“If I say yes, will you get angry enough that we’ll stop?”

“No,” Ethan says, and in his head he starts officially ignoring him.

“Ugh,” Benny groans, for the fifth time. _“Fine.”_

 

 

 

"You know, E, you can't keep having pseudo-asthma attacks partway through the dance."

"I know!" Ethan snaps, but it comes out more like a huff. He's hunched over with his hands on his knees as he fruitlessly tries to catch his breath. The whole _stamina_ thing hasn’t been going well for him. "I'm trying."

"Well, 'trying' obviously isn't working out for you." Benny's expression goes from exasperatedly annoyed to mischievous. "But I have the _perfect_ plan." Benny rubs his hands together, his eyes alight.

"No, no, _no,_ " Ethan says, lifting his head just enough to make eye contact. His voice embarrassingly, comes out like a whine. "I do _not_ like that tone."

"Why not?" Benny says, more focused on fiddling with his laptop.

Ethan swallows another breath of air. "Because it means you're going to do something dumb."

"Me? Doing something dumb? Psh." Benny waves a hand dismissively, then evidently finds what he's looking for, and with a little _aha!_ he clicks something on the screen, and music begins to flow through the speakers. It sounds like the start of Benny's... high school party playlist?

"Uh, Benny? What are we - "

"Dance marathon!" Benny shouts, already moving his hips to the beat. "Perfect endurance training."

"I don't think this - "

Benny grabs Ethan's hand and pulls him into a spin, effectively cutting off Ethan's train of thought. "C'mon, it's _perfect_. We just need to keep you moving every day at the end of practice until you get used to using a lot of energy for a longer amount of time. Then we can work on my flexibility afterwards as a cooldown. It's _perfect_ , E."

Ethan sighs, and refuses to admit that Benny has a point for once. He _does_ let Benny spin him around though, while Benny does his best to keep the dance high-paced for Ethan’s sake, although Ethan suspects it’s more for Benny’s own benefit of having fun.

... And if Benny manages to convince him to try and do the  _Cotton-Eyed Joe_ at three-times speed, well, no one has to know.

 

 

 

For the next week and a half, they mainly focus on their dance marathons (Ethan prefers to call them "stamina building sessions") and increasing Benny's flexibility. They still teach other as much as they can of the dance, and get recordings of each other so they can memorize the dances whenever. (This leads to an awkward conversation with Ethan's dad when he catches him watching the video on his computer, but it's not like Ethan's dad hasn't walked in on less explainable situations before.)

On Thursday, they finally do full run-throughs of their dances. Benny is a bit unsteady for the trickier moves in Ethan's dance, and Ethan is still a bit awkward throughout, but Benny can hit all the heel stretches and splits, and Ethan doesn't collapse on the floor after the song finishes, so they count it as progress.

"Dude, you've gotta loosen up," Benny says the following Monday. "I understand that it's like, not your thing, but you really do have to at least this once "

"I know," Ethan sighs, more than a little frustrated, but being shy isn't really something that's easy to get over. Or maybe it is, and Ethan's just a bit of a mess.

"Here," Benny says, and suddenly his hands are on Ethan's hips like warm weights, pulling his stomach down before sending it leaping up into his throat. "Let's dance."

 _"What?"_ Ethan manages to squeak, as Benny shuffles the slightest bit closer and sways them around. Ethan puts his hands onto Benny's shoulders for lack of a better place to put them. It's not uncomfortable, but it's nothing like Benny swinging him around during dance marathons, and Ethan isn't exactly sure what's happening.

"If you can get your tango on with someone close to you, you'll definitely be able to loosen up when it's just you."

Ethan, surprisingly, finds only one flaw in Benny's reasoning: "I don't know how to tango."

Benny laughs, and Ethan pretends the heat on his cheeks is from exertion. "It's just an expression, Ethan." Benny explains, still laughing. "I don't know how to tango, either."

Ethan, after a while, does find himself loosening up, and before he even realizes it, he's gently moving his entire body to the beat without the confines he usually subjects himself to.

Benny smirks, then lets him go, and Ethan spends only a second being oddly disoriented before the song switches and Ethan starts dancing to what was once Benny's dance, and is now his, and when Benny's smirk softens to a smile Ethan figures he managed to loosen up for this run.

"Told you" Benny says, as Ethan takes gulps from his water bottle.

"I guess," Ethan concedes, and lets Benny bask in his _I-told-you-so_ glory just this once. 

 

 

 

"I'm sorry, E, I really want to give this dance justice, but I'm not going to magically be able to do a valdez, let alone a nice-looking one, in a week and a half."

Ethan nods, because he realized this a while ago. He's been trying to think of moves that could replace it, but everything he thinks of feels out of place. "Is there anything you have in mind?" Ethan asks, because it's worth a shot.

Benny groans. "No, unfortunately." He flops spread-eagle down on the floor, moving his feet to a nonexistent beat.

Ethan blinks, suddenly inspired.

"Can you do a toe rise?" Ethan questions.

"Yeah, why?" Benny answers, and then, _"Oh_. That'd actually work."

"Right?" Ethan says, feeling oddly delighted. He pauses. "Since we're talking about changing moves, is there any way we can change the one move that I always look like a deranged chicken doing?"

Benny snorts at the image, then closes his eyes to think. Ethan is only partially surprised that Benny knows which move he's talking about. "You're good at acro, right?" he says, after a few moments. "Any acro moves with the same timing?"

"Uh, an aerial, maybe. But I'd have to land facing the other way. A front aerial?"

"Would that work?" Benny asks, sounding excited. "Because if it did that would be so cool."

Ethan thinks for a bit. "I... maybe. I can try it, if nothing else."

It takes a few tries, but when Ethan manages to time it correctly, Benny gasps, and repeats, _"so_ cool," and Ethan already knows he's going to work hard to make that timing perfect.

 

 

 

"You know, Ethan, you look really good dancing my dance."

Ethan almost spits out his drink, but manages to swallow it with minimal coughing. Benny walks over to pat him on the back, anyway, which Ethan would appreciate if his brain hadn't just short-circuited.

"You too, Benny," Ethan manages, then realizes that sounds ambiguous, and amends, "You also look good. Dancing my dance."

Benny comically puffs out his chest, then says, "Of course I do. I am the... er... the Ben-ni-nator! A dancing... champion!" His voice is about half an octave lower, his shoulders pulled back, and Ethan doesn't even bother stifling his laugh.

"Okay, B. Whatever you say."

Benny breaks character with a grin, and after some final stretches and a _click_ of the light switch, they exit the studio, Benny's arm thrown over Ethan's shoulders.

 

 

 

By some miracle (or Grandma Weir), Ethan’s and Benny’s dances are fairly spaced apart, so Ethan won’t have trouble running out from backstage to watch Benny perform. Ethan is up first, and he’s the first dance after the intermission, which simply gives him more downtime for his nerves to spike. What if he _can’t_ pull this off, and he ruins Benny’s chances of dancing next year? They’ve been practicing, sure, but doing the dance in front of Benny was a lot different than doing the dance in front of a crowd. Half the reason Ethan was able to pull off the dance in practice, Ethan thinks, is because he was comfortable around Benny. Around Benny, he could be daring.

He isn’t sure if he can be daring now.

He’s startled from his thoughts by a hand on his shoulder and a “You ready, E?” and of course it’s Benny. It’s always Benny.

Ethan swallows. “I’m not sure, honestly.”

Benny sighs exasperatedly, then flips Ethan around to face him, his other hand meeting Ethan’s other shoulder. “E, you’ve been practicing this dance practically _non-stop_ for the past month. And while it wasn’t your dance to begin with, you took it and made it your own. It’s _your_ dance now, and you’re gonna rock it. It’s gonna be awesome.” Benny looks away sheepishly. “Besides, if you do end up looking ridiculous, you won’t be the only one.”

“Benny!” Ethan reprimands. “You can’t give me an encouraging speech then not believe in it yourself!”

“I’m kidding!” Benny tries to placate. At Ethan’s raised eyebrow, he rambles, “Okay so I wasn’t _completely_ kidding, because there’s still a pretty high likelihood I fall on my ass, but!” he adds, before Ethan can correct him, “I’m also pretty confident that as long as that doesn’t happen, I can pull it off. I promise. You’re going to get to dance next year.”

Ethan takes a deep breath. “You’re going to get to dance next year too, B,” he says, softer and fonder than he intends, but Benny’s smile makes it less embarrassing. “Okay,” Ethan declares. “I can do this.”

“You can do this.”

“I can do this!” Ethan repeats. The speakers announce 5 minutes before intermission ends, sounding even louder backstage. “… I’m still a little nervous, though.”

Benny simply pats both his shoulders before leaving him alone backstage. Ethan takes another deep breath, then moves to stage left to wait for the start of his dance.

The curtain that had been closed during intermission opens, and lights flood the stage. Ethan barely hears Grandma Weir introducing him before his dance, and nearly stumbles at his cue, but manages to glide onto the stage like he’s been practicing, and immediately meets Benny’s eyes from where Benny is squatting in the aisle, smile excited and proud and something else Ethan can’t quite name. And suddenly he’s back in the practice room, and it’s just Benny watching him, letting him know where he needs to loosen up and when he needs to be sharp, and when Ethan finishes the dance he meets Benny’s eyes again, and Ethan is slightly winded and his legs feel a bit like jell-o but he is undeniably, inexplicably _happy._ He wonders if this is how Benny feels, after he dances, and wonders if that’s why he always does dances like this one, that are fun and fast and a little shameless.

The applause dies down as he walks off stage, and as soon as the people backstage finish congratulating him, he jogs to the door leading to one of the side aisles, runs up the side and across the back, then down the middle aisle so he can watch Benny’s dance without any obstruction. There are a couple of dances before Benny is up, so Ethan kneels in the aisle fidgeting as he waits.

Benny finally walks onto the stage, looking solemn. It amazes Ethan, honestly, that he’s able to make such a change from his usual goofy smile, and when the music comes on and Benny finally starts dancing, movements slow and deliberate and rolling, it takes Ethan’s breath away, despite him having seen Benny do the dance just yesterday. The crowd shares a hushed silence, as Benny dances, and when he finishes, there’s a moment of stillness before the audience starts applauding. Benny holds his solemn expression for a few more seconds, before meeting Ethan’s eyes and flashing him a wide grin, eyes shining with mirth and pride.

Benny exits the stage, and Ethan runs back the way he came, and before Benny can move more than a few feet from the stage’s exit, Ethan is hugging him with a force he didn’t know he was even capable of. Benny jumps a little, but then he’s hugging Ethan back just as hard, and what started as a stupid bet means so much more, now. It was still a bit about pride, yes, and a bit about proving people wrong, but more than anything, Ethan feels _accomplished,_ like he scaled some invisible ladder before flying up an extra ten feet closer to the stars.

Benny’s arms impossibly tighten around him, and Ethan continues to soar.

 

 

 

_a year later…_

“I wonder what kind of dance they’re doing,” Sarah says, tone playful. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they reenacted some geeky movie scene.”

Erica hums. “They probably chose something more Benny’s style, I heard them laughing every time I passed by during practice.”

“Maybe,” Sarah concedes. “But if Ethan asked to do something more his style, you know Benny would’ve agreed to it eventually.”

Erica shrugs, then admits, “True. I guess we’ll just have to see.”

When the curtain opens, Benny is lying on the floor with a blanket, and before Sarah has time to be confused Ethan comes running out and straight up _dives_ up and over Benny, doing a roll after his hands hit the floor.

“Oh,” Sarah whispers, watching the two of them for the rest of the dance. It’s fun, and kind of silly, but there’s an oddly serious story behind it – Ethan’s doing, Sarah’s sure – and it’s just so _them_ that Sarah can’t help but laugh when she claps for them, wondering why everyone has been so adamant about them not doing a duet together.

“Because there was an equal chance of this being a disaster,” Erica answers, and Sarah must have said that last part out loud. “They’re both kind of hard-headed. But I guess they wanted to prove themselves together more than they wanted to individually.”

Sarah remembers the hug she witnessed backstage a year ago, when she was about to tell the two they had won the bet. She almost thought they’d _never_ let go, and maybe, just maybe, they never really did.

“Either way,” Sarah says, “that was a great dance, wasn’t it?”

Erica reluctantly nods. Sarah laughs again.

And backstage, Ethan and Benny don’t let go.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> dances i imagine them dancing to:
> 
> ethan (originally benny's dance) - "b team" by marianas trench  
> benny (originally ethan's dance) - "the thief" by relient k  
> duet - "catastrophe (acoustic)" by forever the sickest kids
> 
> thank you for reading!!


End file.
